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Two weeks ago, we had the opportunity to look at a sheep named David, right? The author of Psalm 23. I want you to follow along as I read. This will be where we're headed this morning. Psalm 23, a Psalm of David. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. But it's my prayer that these words will transform your life. We talked a couple weeks ago about how this is the story of the psalmist. About this is the story of David, the story of a sheep, one not unlike you and I. As we read it, we remembered that these words were true for David. And these words are true for us because our God is true. These are promises from God, our God who is perfectly faithful, our God who has been revealed perfectly in his Son, Jesus Christ. And we have the joy of seeing these verses through the lens of Christ. Christ our shepherd, the good shepherd, in John 10. This week, while we were away, I was reminded of Hebrews chapter 13, verses 20 to 21. Now may this benediction that we often hear at the end of a worship service, now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant equip you with everything good, that you may do his will working in us that which is pleasing in his sight through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep. In John 10, Jesus says, I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. And then he says, I am the good shepherd. Here in Hebrews chapter 13, the great shepherd of the sheep, and then a little bit later I have it grayed out. Giving you everything good, equipped with everything good. And these are promises, realities for us, because of the finished work of Christ on the cross. They're secured by his blood. This is an everlasting covenant. The truths that are celebrated by David in Psalm 23 find their fulfillment in Christ and are ours as followers of Christ. And these promises of life abundant, of everything good, are found in restored relationship with God our Father. Last week we looked at the story of David's life. David was humble, or two weeks ago, David was humble and dependent, following the Good Shepherd. This morning we're going to focus on verse one. The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. Now, be honest with yourself. Is that true for you? True for you this morning as you're sitting here. Because that's not our default, right? Wanting, desire, being unsatisfied is a tale as old as time. Literally a tale as old as time. Genesis chapter 3. So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. So in Genesis 3, the tactic that Satan uses with the man and the woman is the tactic of desire. Of want. So this simple and beautiful verse from Psalm 23 gets at the root of sin. For Adam and Eve, the consequence was separation and curse. But if we can get this right, church, with his help, ours will be a very different story. Ours will be a story not of separation and curse, but a separate story of restoration and life. Isn't that good news? It is. This is a big deal. It matters. And so we're going to look at this verse with this simple outline. We're thinking about him, our shepherd, our trust, the Lord, our shepherd, our satisfaction, as we work through that short verse. First, the Lord. The Lord. I should have fixed it, but it doesn't show up here. But in this verse in my Bible, L, the O, the R, and the D are capitalized, and that matters. In the book, this is a book I was given by Sharon Fletcher. Chapter one, it's called Shepherd's Look at Psalm 23, written by a guy named W. Philip Keller, if you're interested in it. Chapter one starts with this: the Lord. But who is the Lord? What is his character? Does he have adequate credentials to be my shepherd? My manager? My owner? The Lord. Who is the Lord? We notice if you're reading it from your Bible, the L, the O, and the R D, again, they're in caps. This is the covenant name for God, Yahweh, Jehovah, the God of the nation Israel, his proper name. It's a name that's full of meaning. In a lexicon that I looked at this week, it gave these meanings. The one bringing into existence, the Lord, he who brings to pass, the life giver, the giver of existence, the Lord, the performer of his promises, the one who is, the absolute and unchanging one, the existing, ever-living, as self-consistent and unchangeable, the Lord. This is who our shepherd is. This name for God shows up first in Genesis 2. It shows up in the context of relationship. God gives that first faithful command in the garden as God seeks to protect and bless humankind, mankind, the Lord, our Lord, the Lord, creator, the one who made us, the performer of promises, who is faithful to us, absolute and unchanging, who we do not have to wonder about the Lord. Him who was and who is and who is to come, the Lord. The character of the shepherd makes all the difference. And our shepherd, what we know about our shepherd, what we know about the Lord from pages of Scripture is that he is a hundred percent consistent, a hundred percent available, and a hundred percent faithful. Never slumbers nor sleeps. We know he's perfectly trustworthy. We know he's perfectly good and just and full of grace and mercy. And if we have cause to wonder who our God is, we have the pages of the New Testament where he's perfectly revealed in his Son, Jesus Christ. And the character of God that's revealed in Christ is one who is full of compassion and gentleness and integrity and strength. He's full of wisdom and consistency and forgiveness and grace. It's a beautiful picture. That's the Lord. The picture of our shepherd revealed in Scripture fills us with hope. Our Lord, our shepherd, the Lord is. Now, I don't think the word is gets much credit, right? How many, you know, it's is, it's just there. But it's a pretty big deal. The Lord is. The Lord is. The Lord got involved. In Panama, we used a tool for sharing the gospel, and they called it the Vangi hand. So you can use your hand to share the gospel. Anyone can put your hand down. I'm going to go through it. You can go through it with me. Anyone feeling brave? Yeah? Good job, everyone. All right. God created all that was. His creation was good. It was very good. On the sixth day, so separate yourself, God created man. Created man in his image, created him with a purpose, and he created man for relationship with him. And God said it was very good. It says he walked with them in the cool of the garden, perfect relationship with God the Father, as it was intended. He gave man one command, which we were just talking about in Genesis 3. That command is not kept, it's broken, and it's sin. It separates us from God. Outside relationship with him, and there is nothing we can do in our own strength to return into right relationship with God the Father because He is perfectly holy. He's also just, and to let us back in would not be just. But God, God is. God got involved because he loved his people. He loved you and He loved me, and so He sent His Son, Jesus Christ, to die on a cross. His Son lived a perfect life, died in our place on a cross that we could be restored in relationship with Him. He was buried, and on three days he rose again, conquering the power of sin, Satan, and death. And by trusting in Christ, that's what we do. We trust in his finished work. Our sin is cleansed, and we can be restored in right relationship with God the Father. That is Word is a pretty big deal. He got involved. After Adam and Eve broke relationship, after mankind continued in rebellion, after we chose to disobey, acting consistent with our sin nature and nature we inherited with our fathers, God got involved. God loved. He loved us first. He offered the gift. He sent his son. God loves people. He desires relationship with them. He desires their restoration. The heart of God took him to great lengths at great costs. That's what takes us to great lengths at great costs. It's the love of God for people. Another tool Frank taught us as we were getting ready to go. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord, but God. God loved, God got involved, God reached out, God provided the gift, God offers the gift, and for those who respond, God saves, God redeems, God restores. The Lord is. Here in verse 1 of Psalm 23, that word is makes all the difference. The Lord is for those who follow Him, for those who respond to the gift, He is our shepherd. Shepherds walk alongside. Shepherds provide. Shepherds lead and guide and protect. And God in Christ offers to be our shepherd. That's an incredible offer. That Lord that we were just talking about, the creator, the covenant God, sustainer. That Lord gives you and gives me a personal individual invitation to follow Him. You're invited. You are invited. You have value to God the Creator. Invited into relationship with Him, offered the care of the good Shepherd. Now you have other options. You have other options of someone to follow. You can follow yourself. How's that working out for you? Your wants, your needs, your appetites, your desires, your whims. The world? You can follow the world. You can follow sin and Satan and addiction and discontent. You have options. You're given a choice. Who are you going to follow? Is he your shepherd? This is where we started a couple weeks ago. A sheep named, and I challenged you, encouraged you to fill your name in the blank. Another way to think about it, the Lord is a blank shepherd. Kind of want that on your tombstone, don't you? The Lord is Adam's shepherd. Can you fill your name in? Have you turned to him? It starts with an admission of need. You must admit your need for a savior. Your sin has separated you from God. Nothing's going to get you back. No amount of work or religion or good works or morality or anything is going to get you back. Lord, I'm a sinner in need of a savior. You have to admit that. And then we have an opportunity to turn from our old ways of living, our old master or our old masters, and follow him, submit to him, allow him to lead. Chapter one in this book, I read the first couple sentences, it continues like this. So does he have adequate credentials? Yes, we've we had absolutely has adequate credentials. And if he does, the question for us is how do I come under his controls? In what way do I become the object of his concern and diligent care? We come under his control by yielding to his control. We become the object of his concern and diligent care by allowing him to do so. So for you, in your life, is he in control daily, moment by moment? It's pretty easy to cede control to God the Father while you're sitting here on this comfortable chair on a Sunday morning. Yeah, God, you're in control. But daily, moment by moment, are you living like a sheep? Humble and dependent? That's our opportunity. That's the invitation that's given to us. The Lord is fill your name, is Adam Shepherd. And then we have the beautiful opportunity to live like He's our Shepherd. It says, I shall not want. Is he our satisfaction? The NASB says, I will not be in need. That's a bold statement. That's a countercultural statement. Say it with me. I shall not want. That was pathetic. Give you one more chance. I shall not want. Amen. It's easy to say, not so easy to live, though, right? Can you say that with conviction? I shall not want. I am utterly satisfied. I am perfectly content. I'm not craving anything, not desiring, not wanting. I shall not want. Let's go back to the author. How could David even say this? Remember his life? In the beginning, he's young and obscure, given the lowest job. In the middle of his life, he's hunted and on the war, on the run at war, living in a tent. Is anyone going tent camping this summer? I got like a half hand raised. You're ashamed? Or what? Are we going tent camping? Not many people do. Why? Because it's terrible, right? Let's choose to live without any of our creature comforts. I mean, who does that? He lived like that for years in a tent. David knew desperation, he knew betrayal, he knew heartache, he knew deep loss in the end of David's life, in the eyes of the world. Yes, David had it all. Wealth and comfort and fame, the satisfaction this world offers. But when you look deeper at his life, you see the trouble and the pain, and you see that road the world will lead you down if you follow it, if you let it be your shepherd. So how could David say, I shall not want? And then look at the life of Christ. Not much when viewed with the scorefort of this world, obscure, working class, homeless, and then at the end of his life reviled and crucified. And yet perfectly at peace and content. How? The Apostle Paul, think about him as an example of this. Five times I received at the hand of the Jews the forty lashes, less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked. A night and a day I was adrift at sea, on frequent journey, in danger from rivers, from robbers, from my own people, from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers, in toil and hardship through many sleepless nights, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure, and apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. And then Philippians 4, he makes this incredible statement. Not that I am speaking of being in need. If anyone could say they were in need, we just read the list, right? For I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low and how to abound. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me. The Lord is my shepherd, Paul would say, I shall not want. Content. I have learned the secret. Do you ever feel like this or think like this? When I just have, then I'll be happy. As a kid, we can fill the blank in pretty easily, right? It's like a Lego set. Right? Get a little older. When I just have what? The next gaming system. I have no idea what we're even on for a gaming system, right? Nintendo was the last one. No, Atari was the last one I actually owned. As we get older, the blank gets a little bit more complicated and a little more expensive. As then we get toward driving age and we think, well, you know, when I just have a car, a little bit more freedom, some independence, when I just make it to college, I'm out from out under the roof of my parents. And college finishes up, and when I just have that career, or when I just get married, or when I just have that bigger salary with more money and a better schedule, and then maybe when I just get the bigger house and the nicer car, and the, you know, when I'm when I'm retired, when I just have, you know, 67, then I'll be happy. Just realize that. Not gonna say it. That's when you retire. When I'm just that age, I'll be happy. And we're conditioned to be unsatisfied. And I think sometimes without knowing it, as parents, we can condition our kids to be unsatisfied because we say. Things like, I just want better for you. You ever said that or thought that about your kids? I just want better for you. And I think it's good that we want the best for our kids. I think it's good that we love them, but we are we demonstrating for our children contentment and satisfaction, or are we demonstrating for our children discontent and frustration with what God has for us? What are you modeling? What are you demonstrating? I shall not want. Can you say that today, right now, with your life if nothing ever changed? I'm going to ask you that one more time. Can you say, honestly, I shall not want if nothing in your life changed ever. You are satisfied and content. Satisfaction and contentment are not found in the things of this world. They're found as we follow the shepherd. They're found as we satisfy ourselves in him, in his fullness, in relationship with him. They're found as we follow him, and they're found as we trust him. God, I can't see it all, but I'm going to trust you. God, there's some things I'd like to change, but I'm going to trust you. Will we trust the care of our shepherd? Will we choose contentment? Will we choose satisfaction? It's not choosing laziness. That's not what I'm saying. Following is an active participation. It's a seeking of God. It's a longing for him. It's a pursuit of him. And we need his help, like the apostle Paul says, I can do all things through, not through my strength, but through him who strengthens me. And so we pray when we feel that discontent, when we feel that dissatisfaction. Lord help me not to want. Lord help me to trust. Lord, give me contentment. Lord, give me gratefulness. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. And listen again to the blessings of being a sheep in Psalm 23. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Join me in prayer. Lord, we need your help. Lord, I pray that you would help. Well, first we want to confess, Lord, the want, the desire that's in us. We confess it to you, Lord, and we pray that you would help us to find our satisfaction in you. Help us to trust in you. Help us to be content with where we're at, with what you've given us. Help us to be grateful. Lord, show us the path to go. We don't want to be, it's not that we're stuck or lazy where we're at, God. We just want to follow you, the path that you'd have for us. Lord, I pray that that would be a daily moment-by-moment pursuit. Lord, we thank you for these promises in Psalm 23. We thank you that you are the Lord, covenant maker, covenant keeper, perfectly faithful, perfectly trustworthy. Lord, we thank you that you got involved. You loved first. God, we thank you for this beautiful picture of your care and concern for us as the good shepherd, as the great shepherd. And Lord, I pray that as we lean into that, Lord, that this phrase, I shall not want, would be more and more true in our lives. And God, I pray that that contentment and that gratefulness would be something that this world sees and is desperately hungry for.